I read on this forum that there are a lot of wealthy, snobbish people at emory, which I’ve seen referred to as “japs.” How much of a presence do they have? Are they easy to ignore, or are they too large in normal or too vocal to not be somehow affected by them? How friendly/social are the students? Are they mostly liberal? Is there a niche for just about any student?
It’s really diverse so you’ll kind of get a little of everything. There is certainly a liberal bias in terms of viewpoints and “tolerance”. “Snobbish”? I think there are snobbier and douchier schools among top privates. Wealthy? Most certainly, but Emory is a bit more socioeconomically diverse than most, if not all, private peers if you go by number of students with Pell Grants and number of say, Questbridge students. Students are decently friendly and social I guess (as indicated by the solid Greek population, though I personally wish it was a little lower). "Friendliness of a student body likely more so correlates with regional demographic origin of students than the school itself.
Thanks for the response. You brought up another thing I was wondering about. How much of a presence does Greek life have? I definitely won’t be joining any frats, not into that type of thing, so will being non-Greek affect social life in terms of making friends and having fun?
Greek life is definitely present (30% of students involved) but there is also the other 70% who is not involved. It doesn’t make or break your experience if you do or don’t join Greek life. However, I’d say that socially Emory does not have very many campus-sponsored events. A lot of people complain about a lack of things to do here, and a lot of people join Greek life because it gives them something to do, a means of school spirit, and a community.
I am not your typical sorority girl. A lot of students in Greek life at Emory aren’t. I don’t drink, and I don’t really like parties. I wasn’t into that type of thing either- until I decided to give it a shot when all my friends were rushing. Joining a sorority was the best decision I ever made at Emory, and I encourage you to at least try Greek life!
“Try” it…you mean rushing? That’s fine, but once in, it is kind of awkward leaving. Beyond rushing, I wouldn’t casually try it…but I wouldn’t write it off either. I feel Emory should amplify its intellectual life further even if it is kind of at the expense of Greek life as we know it (as in more intellectual venues should become more prominent). I think Emory is better intellectually than many other Greek strong top schools, but still I think that scene can kind of take away when it is too dominant (luckily we aren’t really in this category and unfortunately, that may be the case because of the force of the administration…I don’t really care for that approach which is essentially trying to “tame” Greek life at Emory…instead efforts should be made to activate other venues and alternatives to it instead of straight up attacking it).
Just a funny maybe slightly offensive observation: I would honestly say that the sororities are less of an issue than some of the fraternities (I guess ATO would be an exception), many of which seem to almost try to mimic stereotypes (and not necessarily the positives that aren’t at odds w/better intellectual life on campus). Sororities and the sorority girls I’ve tutored and knew in various capacities seemed to simply “try” less hard to uphold some stereotypical image and seemed less homogeneous (as in they didn’t have this group think thing going on and did not speak in the same voice like I see several groups of frat guys do…interestingly enough, their voice seemed to change when in conversation with say…a parent lol. I always found it kind of funny actually. I knew it was impossible that MOST frat guys naturally had a raspy drawl for a voice or dialect…that type of self-selection seems unlikely) in general. I know what I’m saying seems offensive but it just seems to be a difference that I observe between the sororities and fraternities. It could have to do with gender differences (maybe peer pressure to act and sound a certain way when in the group is more influential to one gender than another, don’t know), but I have my doubts. I don’t know whether to find my biased observations funny or sad…
Bernie12 is correct. My D is a junior this year and couldn’t care less about Greek life or hard partying. She participates in community service, plays in orchestra, and is an ESL tutor part-time. She has attended various events on campus for music and community gatherings by Latino and Chinese organizations. She has many international friends and hasn’t complained about a lack of things to do on campus. We’re comfortably middle class but not wealthy (Emory is very diverse economicly and racially) and like most top colleges, it has its share of rich, entitled students but my D makes a point to avoid them when necessary.
There are also a lot of international students – they tend to stick together within their ethnic groups but most seem friendly and open if you talk to them.
“Is there a niche for just about any student?” Regarding social justice niches…
There is a student group for feminists, Feminists in Action, if you’re interested in their side of social justice. http://www.womenscenter.emory.edu/Students/feminists_in_action/index.html
There isn’t a niche for anti-feminists as far as I can tell. (Yes, I’m an anti-feminist. Yes, I absolutely support gender equality. No, that does not make me a feminist. No, really, it doesn’t.)
Obviously, racial and LGBT niches exist as well.
Emory is pretty tolerant of differing opinions.